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Scutaro slated for first rehab game Tuesday

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Scutaro doubles in first at-bat 0:20

3/17/14: Marco Scutaro lines a double to left in his first Spring Training at-bat

By Chris Haft and Ryan Hood
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MLB.com |

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants announced Monday that second baseman Marco Scutaro, who has remained sidelined by back problems all season, will begin an injury rehabilitation assignment Tuesday with their Arizona League affiliate.

Scutaro, 38, is expected to play three innings. That would match the game activity he has accumulated all year. Scutaro's lone appearance in a Giants uniform was a three-inning stint in a Cactus League game on March 17.

The Giants had hoped that Scutaro, who played through a painful finger injury last year, would return healthy this year to anchor second base. Instead, San Francisco has used four different starters at that position.

Scutaro, the Most Valuable Player of the 2012 National League Championship Series, hit .319 for the Giants in 2012-13. That contrasts sharply with the production San Francisco has received this year from its second basemen, who entered Monday with a combined .177 batting average, next-to-last in the NL, and a .576 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage), good for 12th in the league.

Chris Haft is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Haft-Baked Ideas, and follow him on Twitter at @sfgiantsbeat. Ryan Hood is an associate reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @ryanhood19. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.